Then again, some of us who claimed to be "independent" are actually "closet Democrats"....

I'm definetly a Democrat this millenium so far but when i first voted I voted for Bush Sr. then Clinton,Clinton.

Give me a Republican with a bit more integrity and doesn't want to wage worthless wars I might vote for him/her.

The Republican party has become a sad bunch since the mid '90s and it's hard to see past the corruption as of late.

Come on, you actually wrote this with a straight face??? I don't care either party, but what you wrote above is funny.

Clinton = integrity?? Hmmm, something about that does not make sense! I am a Republican but am not enthusiastic about McCain/Palin ticket.

I guess God is a Republican again...since Gustav never reached the potential that the weather folks predicted. This time the government was prepared...so, God must be on the Republican side, right? Pretty funny thought process by you...weird association between God, natural disasters, and politics.

How does this affect her ability to lead the country as a VP?? You said earlier (see below) that Clinton's sexual performance in the Oral Office is not important, then why are you jumping on Palin's daughter's sexual indiscretion??? Note...we're talking about her DAUGHTER, not her. Clinton's indiscretion is much worst i would think. Is this what you call integrity?? How does Palin's daughter issue be part of integrity of McCain/Pain???

So, RonM, it is pretty clear that you are NOT independent.

I have nothing to hide, either and this has been going on for years, anyway.
There are some things (sexual orientation, abortion status, names and addresses of relative overseas, medical and mental health treatment), however, that the government has no right to know about a person, but finds ways to get the information by wire tapping and other means that normally require a warrant.
But like Thai and Falls say, I have nothing to hide and appreaciate that my tax dollars contribute to my safety.

Get used to it...some jobs do extensive background check on you, esp. mental health history.

And you are such a Republican if you roll over and take that from government;having a job that you applied for knowing they do an extensive background check and having the government just having access to your personal information w/o your knowledge/permission are two very different things.

I was kidding about the god comment but I guess I needed a smiley to express sarcasm but I figured most could percieve that.

I was also taking a easy stab at the Rep with the family values issues but Republicans are conservatists and having a baby at 17 isn't something that makes conservatists happy;I wasn't reffering to my own personal values.

If I believed in the Republicans I wouldn't have an issue with Palin's daughter's pregnance but I do have issues with how hastily it appears she was chosen and it seem more image driven than substance.
Even a lot of Republicans have gotten nervous with Palin's nomination.
She's one heartbeat away from the presidency and that would make me nervous since we simply don't know alot about her and most americans haven't even heard of her.

I understand that if it applies to the job (who wants to come in and have a "nutcase" in the next cube) especially for mental health. But as a doctor, you know better than anyone about patient confidentiality (unless you are convicted and assigned to an institution). All of this can only be investigated with permission from the perspective employee, and if the perspective employee refuses, they are denied the job. That's cool, because its a private enterprise. But for the government to get physical health history for purposes other than Medicare without a warrant or explicit permission, that's just no good, IMO.
But I spose its okay for government to know if someone is insane and out on the street.
The issue of privacy is a touchy one, so I'm done touching it!

Remind me, what is Obama running for?? And how much experience does he have?? Was Obama well-known to most Americans before this election?? Hell, all i heard before this election was Hilary...not much else from Democrats.

Like i said, i am a Republican but i am also quite critical of Palin's daughter's behavior (see previous post by me)...unlike you, i don't state one thing and then say something opposite later.

Ok...i am done with this political debate too.

Pretty isn't it? Not only do you blow the surplus, but create the largest deficit in history.

Last comment...that was a powerful speech by Palin...hell, even Communist News Network (CNN) was complimentary.

The dot.com boom generated a lot of revenue and the economy was greatly benefited, but how does presiding over the country have anything to do with that? It's got little to nothing to do with all of that fluctuation in the market place. People treat that position more as a scapegoat or whipping boy than what it is and behave as if anything and everything involving the nation is a direct result of that office. It's silly.

You should also ask yourself how a huge surplus is good news for the American people. Think about where that money came from and how the govt. generated the surplus... It means they've taken entirely too much from you, and now it's sitting there in reserve, not doing anything useful yet and not generating interest for you. Granted a large deficit isn't good either, but that chart is also on a flat scale not accounting for inflation, nor does is portray a more accurate picture of the nations economy by listing the ratio with the gross domestic product. That is, how much do we owe compared to how much we produce, which is up from the past. Statistics are easily misleading when not portrayed correctly and important variables left out.

Finally, you'll notice that surplus was tanking before Clinton left office. Again hardly the fault of the individual, but also not someone elses fault they inherited a nosedive. Not to mention other things that happened to the country shortly after that are out of the control of the person is in the oval office.

Obama isn't old and doesn't have cancer and neither does Biden who has more experience which i'm comfortable with.

McCain is still about big business and defines middle class as anybody who makes less than $5,000,000.

H'es simply to much in line with more of bush same policies and IMO this country needs to go in a complete different direction and try somethign new since I don't think obama can make things worse and like most Republicans say "it's not about one guy" and I think the Dems need a shot to try to right things.

I don't hate McCain or Palin and it will be a battle to the end and overall will be an exciting election.



Obama campaign spokesman Tommy Vietor said in a statement that the convention speeches also showed how out of touch the McCain campaign and Republicans are with the American people, neglecting to talk about one of the country's biggest problems: the economy.

"At a time when millions of Americans are struggling like never before to pay their mortgage, their medical bills and their gas bills, tonight's speakers at John McCain's Republican convention proved how out of touch their candidate is by saying not one word about his plans to put our economy back on track and provide real relief to middle-class families," Vietor said. "Apparently, John McCain's belief that we've made 'great progress' economically over the last eight years means he doesn't have to offer any plans at all to fix our ailing economy."

McCain's health: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/09/us.../09mccain.html

As for domestic issues, isn't that supposed to be McCain's job tonight to convey???? Palin's job was to define herself to the public and to attack the "attackers."

Let's compare resumes....

1980 - 1984
Obama: B.A. in political science with a specialization in international relations from Columbia University.

Palin: Wasilla High School, captain of the state-champion basketball team. Miss Wasilla, runner-up in the Miss Alaska pageant, also Miss Congeniality, although that is now disputed.

Him: Ivy League degree.
Her: tiara.


1985 - 1990
Obama: moved to Chicago; became a community organizer as director of the Developing Communities Project (DCP), a church-based community organization on Chicago's far South Side. During his three years as the DCP's director, its staff grew from 1 to 13 and its annual budget grew from $70,000 to $400,000, with accomplishments including helping set up a job training program, a college preparatory tutoring program, and a tenants' rights organization.

Moved to Boston to attend Harvard Law School. Selected as an editor and then elected president of the Harvard Law Review, a full-time volunteer position functioning as editor-in-chief and supervising the law review's staff of 80 editors.

Palin: Bachelor of Science degree in communications-journalism, with a minor in political science from the University of Idaho. Brief stint as a sports reporter for local Anchorage television stations; left to join her husband in commercial fishing.

Him: sterling legal education.
Her: sportscaster.


1991 - 1995
Obama: graduated magna cum laude from Harvard Law School; received contract and advance to write a book ("Dreams from my Father") as well as a fellowship at the University of Chicago Law School. Directed the Illinois Project Vote from April to October 1992, a voter registration drive with a staff of 10 and 700 volunteers that achieved its goal of registering 150,000 of 400,000 unregistered African Americans in the state, leading Crain's Chicago Business to name Obama to its 1993 list of "40 under Forty" powers to be. Appointed as a Lecturer in constitutional law at the University of Chicago. Joined Davis, Miner, Barnhill & Galland, a 12-attorney law firm specializing in civil rights litigation and neighborhood economic development. Active in several community organizations, usually as a board member.

Palin: member of the Alasaka Independence Party which advocates "Alaska First". Elected to Wasilla city council.

Him: Expert on our nation's fundamental legal principles.
Her: plotted to leave the Union; thinks Pledge of Allegiance was written by our founding fathers, doesn't know what a Vice President does.


1996 - 2000
Obama: promoted to Senior Lecturer in constitutional law at the University of Chicago Law School. Elected to the Illinois Senate. Sponsored more than 800 bills. In 2000, lost a Democratic primary run for the U.S. House of Representatives to four-term incumbent Bobby Rush by a margin of two to one.

Palin: elected as mayor of Wasilla (population 5,470), defeating the incumbent by a total of 616 votes to 413. Town budget, $8 million (3 millionths of the Federal budget), approximately 100 employees. Reduced property taxes but increased sales taxes. Fired the Wasilla police chief, citing a failure to support her administration. (He then sued Palin on the grounds that he was fired because he supported the campaign of Palin's opponent, but his suit was dismissed when the judge ruled that Palin had the right under state law to fire city employees, even for political reasons.) Hired a DC lobbyist to bring $27 million in earmarks to the city. Wasilla had zero debt when she entered office but she left it with indebtedness of over $22 million, including $15 million-plus for construction of a hockey center which was built on a piece of property that the city didn